Fred Kuncl

Berwyn Police Department — Berwyn, IL

Accident

End of Watch April 26, 1920

Age 26

Tour of Duty 1 yrs

Badge 153

The Vigil Panel 38 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 5

Incident

Patrolman Fred Kuncl died of wounds suffered a day earlier when he was accidentally shot by another police officer. Patrolman Kincl, who was in plainclothes, responded to a call of a suspicious person on foot in the area of 34th Street and Harlem Avenue, which borders Berwyn and the village of Riverside. While investigating the call, Patrolman Kuncl was accidentally shot and killed by an officer from the Riverside Police Department, who mistook him for a criminal. Patrolman Kuncl was taken to a local hospital where he died the next day from his wounds. The officer from the Riverside Police Department was cleared of all charges. Patrolman Kuncl had served with the Berwyn Police Department for one year.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-IL-72BD3CAF
Stewardship: Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw: August 2, 2026
Last updated: August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

You barely got started.
Patrolman Kuncl gave the Berwyn Police Department 1 year.
Thank you for your service to the Berwyn community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Kuncl.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department Berwyn Police Department

Type Police Department

Location Berwyn, Cook County, IL

Platform Identity berwpd.cook.il.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch April 26, 1920

Tour of Duty 1 yrs

Age 26

Badge Number 153

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Patrolman Fred Kuncl is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In IL, 354 of 1,318 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 26.9% of this state's fallen. That is 26.9 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Berwyn Police Department, 2 of 6 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.

Berwyn Police Department

of 6 officers

33.3% Accident

IL — Statewide

354

of 1,318 officers

26.9% Accident

Nationwide

of 97,772 officers

0% Accident